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DIPOL Weekly Review - TV and SAT TV, CCTV, WLAN

No. 35/2011 (October 31, 2011)

The successor to silicon in the pipeline! In March 2011, the Institute of Electronic Materials Technology and Department of Physics, Warsaw University, announced information about joint development of technology enabling production on an industrial scale of large pieces of material called Grafen (Graphene). The production process is already patented in Poland and is currently in the patent pending process aimed at obtaining global patent protection. A considerable achievement in the production technology of the new material has also been obtained by American scientists from the University of California, Santa Barbara, who on Oct 18, 2011, presented a method for mass production of graphene using LPCVD (Low Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition) process.

Graphene is one of the allotropic forms of carbon. In 2010, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov received the Nobel Prize in Physics "for groundbreaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene". The material consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb crystal lattice.

Some properties of graphene:

very good thermal conductivity,

high electrical conductivity due to high mobility of charge carriers (about 200 000 times higher then in pure silicon),

very good optical transparency - it absorbs only 2.3% of visible light,

flexibility - the layer can be extended by 20% without any damage,

100-times greater strength compared to steel.

Until now, the obtaining of pure graphene for electronic applications was possible only on a laboratory scale. 1cm2 obtained by this method cost about $ 100 million, which practically blocked any commercial applications.

The revolution came in March this year, after the presentation of the industrial process of depositing graphene onto the surface of a SiC substrate used in semiconductor industry.

The benefits associated with the use of graphene can be enormous, limited only by the imagination:

processors several hundred times faster than today - it is estimated that the clock can reach 1 THz,

wireless networks with a much greater extent than at present,

monitors that can be rolled up,

flexible electronics such as laptops, cell phones,

optical networks with much higher bandwidths than the currently possible.

Experts say that the breakthrough that has taken place in obtaining this "super material" will fundamentally change the way of life of people around the world within the next 10 years.

Professional and affordable - SIGNAL DL-8300. A customer wanted to install a video monitoring system at his business premisses. He asked the installer to deploy 8 cameras capable of night vision. The system should be economical, but with high quality of the recorded video, including smooth flow of movement. Another wish was the possibility to monitor the premises remotely around the clock, also with a smartphone.

The CCTV system at the business premises based on Signal DL-8308 M78308 DVR and video transmission via UTP E1408 cable

To fulfill the requirements, the system has been based on Signal DL-8308 M78308 DVR. In the surveillance room there is the power supply ZSIT-62-8 M18281, providing power to the cameras via UTP cable E1408 which also transmits the video signals from the cameras. To match the impedance and kind of the transmission cable to the video outputs of the cameras and video inputs of the DVR, the installer used passive video transmitter-receiver sets Etrix 1VAP M16659 with BNC connectors, designed to transmit video (using baluns) and power from a single source via a twisted-pair cable.

The camera array consists of compact and dome cameras. The entrances to the building are monitored by Sunell SN-IRC4920AJ M11245 day/night cameras with D-WDR function, with a resolution of 500 TVL. Their Sony Effio-E digital signal processors deliver superior image quality, even in difficult lighting conditions. The rooms are equipped with ceiling cameras v-cam 430 M10754. The metal casings protect them from damage, the 600 TVL resolution in conjunction with Sony Super HAD II processor provide excellent video, also in artificial light. The operating parameters of the cameras can be set via OSD menu, using the keypads located on the cables.

The video from the cameras is recorded on four Western Digital 2TB AV-GP SATA HDDs, which allows for archiving more than 6-week period at maximum video performance (25 fps, 4CIF). The video from the cameras can be monitored locally or via the network (using a PC running CMS software or with a browser), as well as via smartphones (support for all popular operating systems).

Shared antenna system (DVB-T+SAT) for eight 2xSAT+TV outlets. The requirement of the owner of one of tenement houses in Katowice was the modernization of the old MATV system in order to receive digital terrestrial television. In addition, each resident should have the the possibility to receive satellite signals (DVB-S), to remove several satellite dishes spoiling the looks of the building facade. The modernization included replacement of the old wiring and terrestrial TV amplifier, installation of multiswitch and modification antenna array.

The new SMATV system has been implemented by Tech-Sat company from Katowice.

Because the installation was done in order to provide analog and digital terrestrial TV signals, the old amplifier was replaced by the universal multi-band amplifier TELMOR WWK-861 R89860, suitable for analog and DVB-T broadcasts. It equalizes the terrestrial signals entering the multiswitch. As the modernization took place before launching local digital multiplex, two out of the six paths were not used. They could be included later, amplifying any (tuned) UHF channels.

Due to the fact that in the transition period the planned digital broadcasting was to be relayed by a low-power local transmitter (2.5 kW), the existing UHF antenna was replaced with the high-gain Tri-Digit A2670.

The cabling has been entirely made of cables from Triset-113 family. Between the antenna and multiswitch it is E1017 coax covered with black polyethylene jacket resistant to UV radiation. The indoor cable is E1015 coax with white PVC coating.

So far, the radial multiswitch TERRA MSR-916 R70816 distributes independent satellite signals from two satellites (Hotbird and Astra) to seven double-satellite outlets Signal R694140. It enables the tenants in each apartment to connect two satellite receivers or one double-tuner PVR receiver. The two currently unused outputs are terminated with the R66205 resistors. High reliability of the system is also ensured by application of PCT E80340 compression connectors and TV-Sat surge protectors Signal R48602, mounted at the inputs of the amplifier and multiswitch.

Quick installation and high reliability - video monitoring of single-family home. The installing of a CCTV system in the home is often very uncomfortable for the residents. The main problem is the cabling. The diameters of coaxial and UTP cables are around 7-8 mm, which requires to make massive cable trays or conduits in the interior or exterior parts of the walls.

A good alternative to that "classic" solution is implementation of IP CCTV system and application as the transmission medium of the plastic (polymer) optical cable (POF) ULTIMODE POF-22D L6521_1. The external dimensions of the POF cable are only 2.2 x 4.4 mm. In addition, fiber optic cables are immune to electromagnetic fields and lightning, and may be added to the conduits with AC power cabling. The electrical signals coming via UTP patch cables are converted to the optical signals by ULTIMODE POF-100MC L6213 media converters. The video streams from the cameras are sent to the optical switch ULTIMODE POF-S8 L6108 and then to the network video recorder.

Video monitoring of single-family home with POF transmission network

It is worth noting that connections of the devices made with POF cable do not require any additional optical connectors or splicing. The POF optical cable is just cut to the required length and directly inserted into the holes in the OptoLock connectors integrated with the devices, and locked.

How to send video from distant cameras in large CCTV systems? The diagram below shows an installation in which the DVR is located in an office building situated about 1 km away from one group of cameras and as far as 3 km from the second group of cameras.

Diagram of a CCTV system enabling long distance video transmission

The signals from the four analog cameras (3x n-cam 550 M11264, and one PTZ camera PH-33 M1196) are sent using fiber optic video converter set ULTIMODE V-204D L2421 and a single-mode fiber optic cable (the length of the fiber could be even 20 km). The transmission of the signals via optical cable has another advantage, in addition to a very long range. It eliminates the impact of any electromagnetic interference on the quality of the signals, so it can be used even in toughest industrial environments.

The signals from n-cam 710 M11270 cameras are sent via UTP cable, using video transformers (baluns). The application of the active receiver Etrix 4VA-R M16745 and passive baluns Etrix 1VP-C M16658 allows for video transmission over a distance up to 1500 m. In the case of a larger distance (up to 2400 m), the passive baluns should be replaced by an active UTP video transmitter, e.g. Etrix 4VA-T M16744.

Detection of suspicious behavior (loitering). Digifort surveillance software K3002, K3003, K3004 can be integrated with Digifort VCA image analysis module VCA K3040 offering a wide spectrum of "intelligent" functions for detection of potential threats. The system can trigger alarm when an object (usually a person, car, or animal) is milling about in any defined area for longer than the time set by the system operator.

The analysis package has many other options:

face detection,

detection of left (new) objects,

detection of any change in object configuration e.g. taking an object,

excessive speed alarms,

detection of camera tampering,

creating virtual barriers,

control of movement direction of objects,

searching for defined objects,

object counting,

search for and reporting about all events generated by the video analysis modules.

How to improve LTE connectivity? In suburban areas there are often problems with LTE connections. The solution to these problems is the use of an outdoor antenna to the LTE modem. We particularly recommend TRANS-DATA LTE KYZ 7.5/8/10 A741031 4G/3G/GSM antenna covering 698-800 MHz, 800-960 MHz and 1700-2700 MHz bands - the latter used by LTE networks.

TRANS-DATA is a brand of high performance antennas for wireless reception and transmission of digital data. Thanks to high quality materials and superior workmanship, the antennas are characterized by reliable and stable parameters. TRANS-DATA antennas significantly improve signal strength and increase the coverage area.

DiSEqC - switching between satellites in individual and multiswitch systems. The need for selecting satellite signals from one of two or more LNBs is the reason for the development of dedicated solutions. At the beginning, the switches were operated manually, then the relays were controlled by various methods (e.g. Tone Burst, control signal from SCART). The diversity of the solutions required standardization which was supported by the satellite operator Eutelsat and resulted in DiSEqC standards...

Compatibility of satellite receivers and switches in the various versions of the DiSEqC standard:

1.0

1.1

1.2

2.0

2.1

2.2

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1.2

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2.0

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2.1

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Wireless IP CCTV system. IP CCTV technology allows to create wireless monitoring systems without problems with video transmission. Ultimate flexibility is achieved by using IP cameras with separate access points, e.g. N2301, N2311. They allow to put transmission points on roofs of buildings, which is not possible in the case of cameras with built-in APs...

Design rules for MATV systems. The diagram below shows an example of the antenna system in a building. The table contains signal levels for selected three antenna outlets (marked as "1", "2", "3") at 862 MHz, assuming that:

signal level measured at the amplifier input is 75 dBuV,

the gain of ZG amplifier is set to 45 dB, thus the output level is 120 dB.

Due to application of channel amplifiers, there is no need to reduce the output levels (which would be needed in the case of broadband devices)...